The city of St. Paul’s federal court win over a disputed protest route for the 2008 Republican National Convention was the first big legal victory in what may be many more cases to come.

U.S. District Judge Joan Ericksen’s ruling Wednesday turned aside requests to alter the time, duration and location of the Sept. 1 march, which could draw an estimated 50,000 people or more.

But it was only the first of what are likely to be many legal headaches over the convention, something the city knew could happen when the Republican Party first chose the Twin Cities to nominate its candidate for the 2008 presidential race two years ago.

“From the moment that it was announced, we certainly realized that there was a lot of planning to do and that it would be a challenge for the office. And we’ve been responding to it ever since,” City Attorney John Choi said. “(The ruling) validates the advice that we’ve given to the St. Paul Police Department.”

Most of the cases stemming from the convention, which will run Sept. 1-4, are likely to be misdemeanor criminal cases, and Ramsey County court officials are coming up with a plan to handle the influx.

But civil cases also stemming from the event will force the city to justify its actions in court. They include the suit over the protest route but also civil rights cases that have the potential to put taxpayer dollars at risk. One, over a protester detained outside the Xcel Energy Center during expected Democratic nominee Barack Obama’s visit last month, already has been filed.

Those cases concern Choi. To address that, the city negotiated an unprecedented agreement with the Minneapolis Saint Paul 2008 Host Committee, which is helping stage the event, to indemnify the city for up to $10 million.

“No city has ever been able to have the host committee pay for an insurance policy for the city and all of its law enforcement partners,” Choi said, noting larger cities like New York are self-insured.

The city is in the process of signing joint-powers agreements with local law enforcement agencies across the state. They hope to have 3,000 or more police officers in town for the convention. Those officers all would be covered by the policy.

The city’s contract with the host committee offers further protections. For instance, the committee must buy a $25 million pyrotechnics policy, should anything go wrong with fireworks displays as the Republican Party nominates John McCain.

To further minimize the risk, St. Paul’s lawyers have been active in training police officers for the event, Choi said.

“This is not an everyday situation where the cops encounter First Amendment issues,” Choi said.

According to Ericksen, the city passed its initial First Amendment test with flying colors. According to lawyers for the protesters, it did not.

Teresa Nelson, legal counsel for the ACLU of Minnesota, said she was disappointed by the ruling but hasn’t decided whether the group would appeal. About six weeks remain until the start of the convention.

“In some ways, this order really does weaken the First Amendment. All the government really needs to do is raise the specter of security, and anything they do is going to be justified,” Nelson said.

The order preserves a route granted by the city that proceeds from the Capitol, where a massive rally is planned, to the Xcel Energy Center along Cedar and West Seventh streets. A public demonstration area will be set up on a triangular block across the street from the venue.

Members of the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War, the group that brought the suit, said they plan to turn up the pressure on St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman to grant more space and time for protesters.

“He has chosen to align himself with the Republican Party, which is very unpopular in his city and in his state,” said Meredith Aby, a spokeswoman for the group.

Coleman issued a statement praising the decision.

“This ruling … supports what we have known from the beginning — that we have taken extraordinary steps to provide unprecedented access for the community to express their First Amendment rights,” Coleman said.

At a hearing last week, Ericksen spoke as if she were leaning toward altering the march to meet some of the protesters’ demands, particularly the duration of the march. Protesters claimed they didn’t have enough time to move tens of thousands of people from the Capitol to the Xcel Energy Center and back.

But Ericksen’s order made no such allowances, despite language that at times seemed sympathetic.

“Security measures that were used — and upheld — for one large gathering do not thereby become the baseline for all future large gatherings,” Ericksen wrote, discussing cases the city has used to support its position that the route grants unprecedented access to the venue. “Were it otherwise, a sort of ‘security creep’ would come, by increments, to overwhelm the First Amendment.”

That kind of language frustrated Aby.

“Her assessment of the situation is, at different points, supportive,” Aby said. “But in the end, she doesn’t do anything about it.”

Choi said the city remains committed to working with protesters as the convention draws near, particularly if the expected size of the march changes.

“We’re obviously very pleased with the decision. I thought the judge’s order and memorandum was particularly detailed and thorough and was carefully written to withstand any appeal,” Choi said. “Notably, the order rejects all of the plaintiffs’ arguments. More importantly, it confirms the fact that the city has been conducting its security planning consistent with the Constitution.”

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